Versailles and the chinampas represent opposite paradigms of interaction with water. Versailles, as a hydric machine, symbolizes human dominion over nature: its artificial and centralized hydraulic system manifests the absolute power of Louis XIV in controlling a natural environment transformed into a spectacle. In contrast, the chinampas are a man-made water organism and climate regulator that integrates the dynamics of the ecosystem to sustain and amplify life. While Versailles imposes a hierarchical logic, the chinampas exemplify a symbiotic relationship; this comparison reveals how water technologies reflect governance models: anthropocentric domination versus reciprocity with the environment and its climate.
Project team: Elena Tudela, Paulina Neri, Fabricio Cortés, Daniel Daou